1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is in the field of mass transit and pertains particularly to methods and apparatus for low friction safety in case of personal vehicle contact with a guideway side curb.
2. Discussion of the State of the Art
In the field of mass transit there are a variety of proposed mass transit system architectures, some developed and some not yet realized. Several such systems are described with reference to the co-pending application listed in the cross-reference section of this specification.
The inventor is aware of a computerized system for guiding activity in a current construction project is provided, comprising digital memory storing information about completed and current construction projects, at least one input mechanism for a user to provide information to the digital memory concerning the current construction project, a processor system for accessing information in the digital memory, processing said information, and providing output available to a user of the computerized system, and software guiding the processor in its accessing information, processing the information, and in providing the output. Considering a current project, the software accesses information regarding one or more completed projects as well as information concerning the current project, processes the information, and provides output specifying one or more actions to be taken in the current project.
In the system known to the inventor, in one aspect, the projects concern building computer-managed personal transport systems, wherein wheeled vehicles are guided in dedicated guideways by a computerized guidance system. In this aspect the inventor is aware of a personal transport system that includes a master computer, a controlled guideway comprising travel lanes and entrance and exit ramps, and dual-mode wheeled vehicles each having an on-board computer coupled to the master computer system, the dual-mode vehicles capable of accessing the guideway via the entrance ramps, travel on the guideway, exiting the guideway via the exit ramps, and of being driven on surface streets. At individual entrance ramps, dual mode vehicles attempting to access an entrance ramp are evaluated by equipment coupled to the master computer for suitability to travel on the controlled guideway, and vehicles failing one or more tests may be prevented from accessing the controlled guideway.
In the system described above and in more detail in the referenced co-pending application, personal vehicles (PVs) travel on specially constructed guideways having a vehicle transit lane bordered by guide curbs. In one aspect, the vehicles drive on special vehicle tracks and the distance between the guideway curbs is constraining such that the vehicle having a specific width dimension from edge of one tire on one vehicle side to the outside edge of the opposing tire must stay on the vehicle tracks.
In the co-pending specification, it is described that in some preferred embodiments the tires for PVs are constructed to have a special low-friction sidewall material such as Teflon™ or other low friction material to reduce friction between the tires and side curbs and guide surfaces as much as possible. Also in some cases the side curb surfaces may also be constructed to have low-friction material for the same reasons, and in some embodiments the tires are other than inflatable, to reduce the hazard of flat tires on the personal transit system (PTS) guideway. It has occurred to the inventor that there are a variety of materials and methods for implementing a system to protect vehicle tires and guideway curbs from frictional heat development and wear in case of contact between a personal vehicle's tires and a guideway curb.
Therefore, what is clearly needed in a personal transit system where PVs travel on dedicated guideways defined by guideway curbs is a system for protecting the vehicle tires and the guideway curbs from wear and abrasions and for reducing or eliminating any heat generated from occasional contact between tires and curbs.